The REAL Story of Thanksgiving

The Liberator Onlline ^ | Nov. 20, 1997 | Paul Schmidt

[FreeKeys]

The Real Story Behind Thanksgiving Did you know that the first [Plymouth Colony Pilgrim's] Thanksgiving was a celebration of the triumph of private property and individual initiative? William Bradford was the governor of the original Pilgrim colony, founded at Plymouth in 1621. The colony was first organized on a communal basis, as their financiers required. Land was owned in common. The Pilgrims farmed communally, too, following the "from each according to his abilities, to each according to his needs" precept. The results were disastrous. Communism didn't work any better 400 years ago than it does today. By 1623, the colony had suffered serious losses. Starvation was imminent. Bradford realized that the communal system encouraged and rewarded waste and laziness and inefficiency, and destroyed individual initiative. Desperate, he abolished it. He distributed private plots of land among the surviving Pilgrims, encouraging them to plant early and farm as individuals, not collectively. The results: a bountiful early harvest that saved the colonies. After the harvest, the Pilgrims celebrated with a day of Thanksgiving -- on August 9th. Unfortunately, William Bradford's diaries -- in which he recorded the failure of the collectivist system and the triumph of private enterprise -- were lost for many years. When Thanksgiving was later made a national holiday, the present November date was chosen. And the lesson the Pilgrims so painfully learned was, alas, not made a part of the holiday. Happily, Bradford's diaries were later rediscovered. They're available today in paperback. They tell the real story of Thanksgiving -- how private property and individual initiative saved the Pilgrims. This Thanksgiving season, one of the many things I'm thankful for is our free market system (imperfectly realized as it is). And I'm also grateful that there are increasing numbers of Americans who are learning the importance of free markets, and who are working to replace government coercion with marketplace cooperation here in America and around the world. Paul Schmidt -- copied from http://FreedomKeys.com/thanksgiving2.htm  which was copied from the Nov. 20, 1997 issue of  THE LIBERATOR ONLINE at http://www.theadvocates.org/liberator/vol-02-num-21.htm for more detailed accounts see:  The Great Thanksgiving Hoax  at-http://mises.org/story/336 The Pilgrims’ Real Thanksgiving Lesson  at  http://snipurl.com/av27 How Capitalism Saved America  at http://tinyurl.com/CapitalismSavedAmerica How Private Property Saved the Pilgrims at http://tinyurl.com/ylc83r The REAL Thanksgiving Story   at   http://tinyurl.com/RealThanksgivingStory Giving Thanks for Lessons Learned at  http://www.goldwaterinstitute.org/article/2281 and The Plymouth Experiment  at http://snipurl.com/12lca Find some more excerpts from Plymouth Colony Governor William Bradford's diary-HERE: http://tinyurl.com/1stThanksgiving Finally, to see how it feels to be caught in a coerced-sharing society check out THIS page: http://tinyurl.com/20thCenturyMotors AND for those of you unfortunate enough to have to deal with fanatical self-righteous altruists, see THIS page:  http://FreedomKeys.com/paradox.htm#pcdt And there are a lot more HERE:  http://search.mises.org/search?q=thanksgiving&site=default_collection Also see: "Private Property Saved Jamestown, And With It, America" HERE: http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=8236 "Property must be secured, or liberty cannot exist." -- President John Adams, direct descendent of Pilgrims John and Priscilla Alden  "The true foundation of republican government is the equal right of every citizen in his person and property and in their management." -- Thomas Jefferson "Private property is the most important guarantee of freedom." -- F.A. Hayek  "No freedom is secure if your property rights are not secure." -- Neal Boortz "It is the institution of private property that protects and implements the right to disagree."-- Ayn Rand "If you can't own (and use) property, you are property." - Wayne Hage Check out: HOW CAPITALISM SAVED AMERICA: The Untold History of Our Country, from the Pilgrims to the Present by Thomas DiLorenzo (paperback) $9.95 >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> HAPPY THANKSGIVING! >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Also see Town Hall Posters here: http://FreedomKeys.com/teapartysigns.htm -- and Please PASS IT ALONG------------> -- -- you can make a cleaner copy by going to this page and copying it or sending it as-is: http://FreedomKeys.com/thanksgiving2.htm -----------> ----------->

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[armymarinemom]

The Pilgrims farmed communally, too, following the "from each according to his abilities, to each according to his needs" precept

What did they call communism back then? Karl Marx was around in the 1800's.

[algernonpj]

Thanks for the ping

[ROLF of the HILL COUNTRY]

“...the only treaty not to be broken.”

Not quite right. There was at least one other treaty with the Indians that was never broken by either party:

The German settlers in Fredericksburg, Texas, have an over 150 year old treaty with the Comanche that lasts to this day. It is celebrated by both groups (annually, I believe).

Also, it is my understanding that Squanto as a young boy went to England with the remaining Hope colonists when they gave up. He became educated in England, and even had an audience with the King. During which, he responded to a question about his greatest desire, “To return to my homeland and teach my people about Jesus Christ.”

If this is true, and as I've read it various sources, I believe it to be so, the Indians the Pilgrims encountered were already familiar with the precepts of Christianity. That may be one reason why the Pilgrim-Indian relationship was so cordial.

[FreeKeys]

Happy Thanksgiving, FreeKeys!

Thank you. The same to you and yours!

[FreeKeys]

Just sent this to a bunch of friends.

EXCELLENT !!!

[3D-JOY]

Thanks for the ping...I needed this reminder.

[maine-iac7]

The German settlers in Fredericksburg, Texas, have an over 150 year old treaty with the Comanche that lasts to this day. It is celebrated by both groups (annually, I believe).

Neat! I'll add that to my information.

So you're in the Hill Country?

My daughter and hubby - (Navy pilot - when stationed in Corpus - would take trips to Fredericksburg. She LOVES it there. I researched it online. My kinda place.)

Re Squanto- Tisquantum: No where, in all the writings of the Pilgrims, have I come across anything on Squanto re his conversion to Christianity. I do think it would have been noted, as that would have been quite a startling discovery.

He was, indeed, a captive in, first,Spain, where he came under the protection of friars for a bit before being taken under the wing of Sir Ferdinando Gorges - fortunate for Squanto - Sir Gorges was head of the Council for New England - and this would lead to Squanto eventually being send to England, where he picked up the language.

Being valuable as a translator, he was sent back to America and eventually made his way back to the Plymouth area that had been his birthplace only to find his village had been wiped out by illness - plague or influenza? He then made his way to Massasoit and lived with his people until after the Pilgrims came.

after becoming friends with them, he set up his wiciup next to the village as he had acquired a liking for the English way of living. And, as we know, he was invaluable to the Pilgrims those first 2 years.

However, he became a little too big for his breechcloat - and began to double deal with the Pilgrims and the Indians, with a goal of usurping power. Massasoit called for his death - but due the the fortuitous arrival of a ship on the horizon (turned out to be "The Fortune"!) he escaped to live a few more months. However, in the fall of 1622, he took ill. It started with a nose bleed. He died - with purple lips and fingernails. I have never heard it supposed, but I suspicion Massasoit finally carried out his sentence of death - as the symptoms are consistent with poisoning.

The only mention that connects Squanto to Christianity that I remember coming across is in Gov. Bradford's account of his death: "He asked the "Governor to pray for him that he might go to the Englishman's God in Heaven."

Gov. Bradford commented no further.

[colorado tanker]

One would think after the fall of the Berlin Wall and seeing what damage Communism caused Eastern Europe in just forty years this lesson would be learned, but apparently we have to keep relearning it.

[LucyT]

The REAL Story of Thanksgiving

Communism didn't work any better 400 years ago than it does today.

[Thanks, FreeKeys.]

[Lady Jag]

On the other side of the coin, Indians believed the land belonged to no one but itself and they were thankful for the bounties the land gave them and worshipped the miracles.

Their differences and opposing religious beliefs didn't start the fight, however, a plus for both sides. The misinterpretation of an Indian death started the horrific war.

[azishot]

Good article...thanks for the ping, LucyT.

I never learned this in school. Heard it for the first time on Rush’s show a long time ago.

Interesting how the *educators* leave out the most important facts.

>>>Communism didn’t work any better 400 years ago than it does today.<<<

I’m sure the liberals of today would say that the Pilgrims just weren’t doing it the right way (or something equally dumb).

Happy Thanksgiving! (I can still say that, right?)

[gimme1ibertee]

The results: a bountiful early harvest that saved the colonies. After the harvest, the Pilgrims celebrated with a day of Thanksgiving -- on August 9th.

Wow! My Birthday!! I'd never seen this article before....thanks and I will pass it on to all in my address book.

[Alamo-Girl]

Thanks for the ping!

[bamahead]

Also a good read: "The Great Thanksgiving Hoax" over at Mises.org.



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[r9etb]

The only problem with the article is that it's false.

While we can all note with approval the contents of Mr. Bradford's diaries, the fact is that the Thanksgiving feast had nothing to do with it.

One of the most loathesome things an author can do, is bend history to suit an ideological purpose. Communists do that sort of thing. So, apparently, does Mr. Schmidt.

[FreeKeys]

sources and references?

[FreeKeys]

Also a good read: "The Great Thanksgiving Hoax" over at Mises.org

Yes, thanks for pointing that out again. You might notice that, among all the corroboration, all the other articles, resources, sources and references listed at the bottom of the post, that particular article is the first one, and the search page for Mises.org is among the last ones

[r9etb]

sources and references?

You mean, other than the fact that the first Thanksgiving feast was held in the fall of 1621, to celebrate the Pilgrims' first successful harvest ... and that, a decade before the supposed transition to a free market economy?

The article is cute, but it's bullsh*t, FRiend.

[netmilsmom]

Michael Medved tells the same story for Thanksgiving.

According to native sources, the Indians provided venison, corn pudding, pumpkin, native birds and fish to the Pilgrims for the feast.

If they had a great harvest, perhaps they would have been feeding he natives, not the other way around. There are a whole lot of sources in this article.

Could you please share yours? I don’t want to teach my kids any untruths.

[dcwusmc]

You’ll have to settle for second place on their list, at best. I have first place already staked out. I will either be FIRST on their enemies list or totally off it until it’s too late for them to react to me!